Samsung Launches Two New Tablets to Compete with Apple iPad

Samsung is now offering Galaxy Tab S 10.5 and Galaxy Tab S 8.4 with Super AMOLED display and fingerprint scanner, as announced by Economic Times. The devices will go live in the U.S at a price of USD 400 for the smaller model and USD 500 for the larger one. The new tabs will allow the users to take phone calls, send SMS and control Samsung smartphones from their larger screens.

The tabs comes with a resolution of 2560 x 1600 pixels, are 6.6mm in thickness, have 3GB RAM, 16/32GB storage, microSD slot, 8MP rear camera and 2MP front camera. The Galaxy Tab 10.5 has a 7,900mAh battery and the 8.4-inch variant has 4,900mAh battery with life of more than 10+ hours on both tablets.

Earlier, the company had launched its UI in 9 Indian languages for its smartphones and tablet users. also, it had introduced two mid-segment smartphones in India – both under INR 8500. Recently, Samsung had acquired New York based social-video startup Shellby.TV and unveiled health tracking device in May, 2014.

“In the past, Android has lagged behind but we’ve worked really hard to make sure the same apps and services are available on Android as in other ecosystems. All the free apps that people use most often — Facebook, Twitter,LinkedIn — they’re available across both platforms.”

IndiaToday says: Samsung is the world’s second-largest maker of tablets, behind Apple and its trend-setting iPads. In recent years, Samsung has been gaining market share – at Apple’s expense – by offering a wide range of sizes and quality.

Earlier this year, it unveiled a “Pro” brand aimed at professionals. The “Tab” brand has been used on Samsung’s budget tablets and don’t come with a stylus, as Samsung’s “Note” tablets do. With the new screens, Samsung is elevating the Tab line to become its flagship tablet.

Samsung did release an AMOLED tablet in 2012, but it was expensive and didn’t sell well. The new ones will be priced more competitively. The new tablets will also let people make calls when a Samsung phone is nearby and to unlock the device with a fingerprint. The tablets can support up to eight user profiles, so members of a household can get separate home screens simply by swiping their finger on the sensor.

More from Economic Times: On the software front, both tablets run the latest Android 4.4 with Samsung’s Magazine UX interface. A new highlight is the SideSync features that allow Tab S users to mirror their Samsung Galaxy S5 screen on the tablet. You can then forward voice calls or transfer files from the phone to the tablet instantly over WiFi. In addition, they come with Samsung’s bouquet features including S-voice, WatchOn universal remote, Download booster, RemotePC and a Kids mode. A multi-user mode allows up to 8 users to configure the tablet as per their requirement. Plus, Samsung has tied up with Conde Nast, National Geographic and Marvel to boost its content portfolio.

Samsung has seen its market share of tablet grow from 7.6% in 2011 to 22.6% in Q1 2014 and to continue this trend, has launched the Samsung Galaxy Tab S. The Tab S 8.4 is priced at US$ 399 onwards and the Tab S 10.5-inch is priced at US$ 499 onwards. Both tablets will be available in the Unites states from July 2014. We expect the tablets to be launched in India in August at an expected price of Rs 25,000 onwards.